Regret is a White Hot Blade
by Ex-Shark-Virtue-005
Summary: After the incident at Zaude life continues, right? Then so does the regret of the actions taken there. How does everyone involved in the incident cope with the disaster that took place? Post Zaude Spoilers present.
1. Anger Clouded Judgment

Konnichiwa Minna-san! I'm Ex-Shark-Virtue-005 here with my first Tales of Vesperia fanfiction! This is a little fic inspired by the whole incident at Zaude that everyone seems to _love _oh so much. Since this is a post-Zaude fic there are spoilers so be aware. This will be a chaptered story, I hate one-shots with a passion!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia or the characters. I'm just borrowing them for a bit

Happy Reading!

* * *

Chapter One: Anger-Clouded Judgment

Sodia watched in rage as Flynn pushed that…that _criminal_ Yuri Lowell out of the way of an odd sort of laser blast from the large blastia to take the hit himself. "_What does Commander Flynn see in that criminal?"_ Sodia thought, "_I would never associate myself with the likes of him."_

"Flynn!" Yuri cried as he dropped to his knees to see if his friend was alright.

"Don't worry about me," Flynn gasped, "Stop Alexei…I'll send Sodia and Witcher to help. Don't let Alexei escape again…"

"Alright," Yuri said as he stood up and hurried after the former commandant.

"Sodia, Witcher," Flynn called as he struggled to stand.

"You shouldn't be moving," Sodia said as she approached her commander, "You're injured."

"I'm fine," Flynn said, "I need you to help Yuri and the others. They can handle the battle but I'm worried about what might happen afterwards. I don't like the look of that Blastia."

"But sir, Yuri Lowell is…"

"I know," Flynn said, "He's a criminal. But Yuri is also one of my closest friends and I would be devastated if anything was to happen to him in our presence. I know you don't like him but he is protecting Lady Estellise for us."

Sodia sighed, "I understand," She said, "You should have Witcher stay with you just in case. We don't know what Alexei hit you with and it's better to be safe than sorry."

Flynn sighed, "Alright," He said reluctantly, "You go help Yuri and the others and Witcher can stay here and help me gather the rest of the Knights."

"Sounds good," Sodia said as she headed towards the rising platform. "_With any luck Alexei will mortally wound Yuri Lowell…and there will be nothing we can do to save him,"_ She thought maliciously.

* * *

By the time Sodia reached the top of the platform the battle was over. Yuri was confronting Alexei and while he looked winded and rather fatigued, Yuri showed no sign of any life-threatening injuries.

She watched as Alexei activated Zaude's Blastia and before anyone could do or say anything a large dark purple mass ripped a hole in the sky.

"Wha-what the hell is that?" Genius mage Rita Mordio asked.

"The Adephagos…" Yuri gasped as he too gazed that the mass in the sky.

_"What is the Adephagos?" _Sodia thought as she watched Alexei stagger around spouting off some sort of nonsense as the large Blastia started to sink closer to the platform. She continued to watch in rage as Yuri slashed at Alexei with his sword, mortally injuring him. "_Commander Flynn should be the one killing Alexei not Yuri Lowell…"_

There was then a sound like an explosion and the large Blastia core fell crushing Alexei. Sodia shielded her eyes from the debris that was kicked up from the platform and the core. When she opened her eyes Yuri was just standing near the edge of the platform completely unscathed and just muttering to himself about the giant dark mass in the sky.

Sodia clenched her fists in rage. She wanted to hurt the man standing before her. Her captain had been injured protecting this…this human_ monster _standing before her and he…he was just standing there as if nothing had happened. She reached for her sword but then remembered that Yuri was a skilled swordsman and he would probably be able to easily dodge and counter a sword attack. She reached under her armor and pulled out her dagger, "_This will have to do,"_ She thought hoping that she would have the opportunity to strike a critical point on his body without him seeing the weapon first.

"Flynn?" Apparently Yuri had heard the dagger scraping against her armor because he turned towards her just as she started running towards him, "Sodia what's wro-…!"

Sodia gasped as she felt her dagger pierce through Yuri's skin. The feeling was so wonderful yet so terrifying that she dropped her weapon. Yuri cried out in pain as the small blade entered and left his body. She had struck down many rouge knights and monsters with using the same technique that she used to strike down the man in front of her but it felt so much different this time. The feeling of her knife sliding easily into flesh left her feeling as if she had just been electrocuted and unlike the other times, she couldn't shake the sensation.

"_But Yuri is also one of my closest friends," _Flynn's voice resonated in her head, _"And I would be devastated if something was to happen to him in our presence."_

Sodia gasped in horror as Yuri staggered closer and closer to the edge of the platform. His eyes wide yet struggling to stay open and his right hand to the wound that was bleeding at a dangerous rate. She wanted to save him, to stop him from falling over the edge but she couldn't move…every muscle in her body was tight and refused to yield to her commands.

_"Oh God…"_ She thought as Yuri slipped off the platform and fell, "_What have I done…" _She felt sick. She had just stabbed her commander's best friend, someone she was supposed to be helping, in the abdomen then just watched as he staggered off a platform that was at least a hundred meters above the icy sea below.

"Yuri!" Estellise called, "Yuri, where are you!" The pink haired princess then caught sight of Sodia, "You're Flynn's Lieutenant! Have you seen Yuri? Please tell me that he wasn't crushed by that thing."

Sodia found herself unable to talk while she eyed the blood-tainted dagger on the ground hoping that none of them saw it, "He…" she finally muttered feebly, "He fell…"

"What!" Estellise asked, "He...Yuri fell...?"

"He…he was hit from behind by a piece of debris…" Sodia muttered. She had never told such a blatant lie in her life but no one needed to know what had just happened, "I tried to help him…but there was nothing I could do…he just fell…"

"No..." Estellise gasped as tears ran down her face, "No...It can't be...Yuri..."

_"What do these people see in that man?" _Sodia thought as Estellise cried. She then gasped as Yuri's dog walked up to the dagger, sniffed it then whined.

"What is it Repede?" Estellise asked as she knelt down next to the whimpering dog, "Sodia, is this yours?" She asked as she picked up the dagger, "It has blood on it."

Sodia gasped. "Th-thank you…" She gasped as she took the dagger from Estellise, "I lost my sword during a battle with one of the red eyes and had to use my dagger. I must have dropped it when I rushed to aid Yuri…" She knew that she could fool Estellise and the others but there was no fooling the dog. She was sure that some of Yuri's sent had transfer to her clothing as well as the dagger and while the humans couldn't smell it, the dog most certainly could.

"Estelle!" Rita called as she ran over to them, "What's wrong? Why are you crying? Are you hurt somewhere?"

"No…" Estellise sobbed, "It's Yuri…he...he fell…"

Rita Mordio's eyes widened, "No way…" She gasped, "From this height…there's no way he…"

"Judith," Estellise screamed, "Call Ba'ul! Tell him…tell him that Yuri fell… ask him…see if he can find Yuri…!"

The blue-haired Krytian woman nodded and put her hand her forehead. Sodia watched and hoped that whoever or whatever Ba'ul was had found Yuri before he could drown. But when the Krytian's face fell her head spun.

"I'm sorry," Judith said, "Ba'ul hasn't seen Yuri…I'll have Ba'ul search for him."

"NO!" A young boy cried, "Yuri…Yuri can't be dead…He just can't!"

"Lieutenant Sodia!" Witcher called, "Commander Flynn wants us to get off this platform!" He looked around realizing that someone was missing, "Where's Yuri Lowell?"

"He fell…" Sodia said softly, "He was injured and he fell…"

* * *

Flynn was relieved to see that Estellise, Sodia, Rita Mordio, Karol, Judith, Raven and Repede were safe but there were no signs of Yuri. His stomach dropped as he noticed the tears running down Estellise and Karol's faces, "What happened?" He asked, "Where's Yuri?"

"Commander," Sodia sobbed as she fell to her knees, "I'm sorry…but Yuri…he…Yuri Lowell fell…I was there and I couldn't save him…I could have stopped him but I was in such shock…I froze. To see someone get so badly injured right before my eyes…and not able to do anything to help…I'm so sorry Commander…"

Flynn just stood there as his mind refused to process what his second in command had just told him, "Please tell me you're joking…" He muttered as he sank to his knees. A fall from that height was bound to be fatal and if Yuri was injured when he fell...Flynn shut his eyes he didn't want to think about that outcome, "Please tell me that this is just some sick joke or some terrible nightmare…" He looked at Repede who was lying beside Estellise whimpering for his master, "No…Dammit Yuri! Witcher order all the ships in the area to search for Yuri Lowell!"

"Understood!" Witcher called as he ran off.

"Sodia," Flynn said, "What's wrong?"

"I don't feel well…" She muttered as she ran off covering her eyes so Flynn and the others wouldn't see her cry.

Flynn sighed. He had never seen Sodia in this state before, she was always so level headed. "_Something's not right,"_ Flynn thought,_ "I'll look into that matter later though…we _need_ to find Yuri…"_

* * *

Yuri gasped as he looked up that the mass in the sky. "The Adephagos disappeared into the void…" He muttered to himself, "Well I guess they didn't say that they actually destroyed that thing. They just left this piece of crap behind…"

He then heard the sound of metal scrapping against metal, "Flynn?" He asked as he turned and he was rather surprised to see Flynn's second in command running towards him. A feeling of dread washed over him, Flynn had been injured before they left and Sodia's actions did not bode well, "_Is Flynn alright?"_ He thought, "Sodia, what's wro-!"

At first he thought that Sodia was there to uncharacteristically seek his assistance. But his question was cut short when he was hit in the stomach with a sharp excruciating pain. Sodia _stabbed _him! His best friend's Lieutenant had just stabbed him in the stomach! He put his hand to his side as he tried to recoil. He could feel the blood spilling from the wound faster than he could attempt to stop it as his head started to grow heavy.

To say that he was angry was an understatement. He wanted to retaliate but his body was instinctively moving away from his attacker and he was probably in no condition to put up much of a fight anyway. He looked at Sodia and through his blurring vision he could make out the pure look of absolute terror on the girl's face. Her expression clearly reading "What have I done?" And some of his anger at the girl diminished, besides…he knew why she had done what she did. He was a threat to Flynn and Sodia was just worried about her captain.

He felt himself beginning to fall,_ "Is this the end for me…?"_ he thought as he saw the sky then the ocean as he began his decent. "_What's gonna happen to Estelle, Karol, Rita, Judi and the old man…?"_ He thought as his pain clouded vision began to dim, "_Who's gonna look after Repede after I die…?"_

"Guys…I'm sorry..." He muttered as his body began relaxing as his consciousness began to fade. "_At least I had managed to rid the world of that power-drunk, corrupted bastard Alexei."_

Then, just before his vision completely failed on him, he could have sworn that he saw the dragon that he had seen at the Weasand of Cados and the Sands of Kogorh. But his mind wouldn't comprehend what he had seen, it just shut down on him as his body plunged into the icy ocean.

* * *

So what did ya think? It's a start right? Like I said there will be other chapters to this so uh, just hang tight a bit.

_Ex-Shark-V-005_


	2. Hope and Hope Lost

Hey there! I'm back with the second chapter to this fic! After getting the feedback from the first chapter I took the advice that I was given. I don't have much to say about this chapter aside from there may be spoilers that stem a bit farther in the game then right after Zaude.

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia or the characters. I'm just borrowing them for a while.

Happy Reading!

* * *

Chapter Two: Hope and Hope Lost

Duke watched the battle from a distance with Khroma.

"That man was a fool," Khroma said, "He should have headed my warnings. He has only plunged our world into chaos with his little quest for power. I thought you said those children would stop him."

"As far as I am concerned, they did stop him," Duke said as he watched the giant Blastia core crushed Alexei, "He has indeed plunged our world into chaos however there is nothing more he can do."

"When do you plan on getting the Dein Nomos back from that boy Yuri Lowell?" Khroma asked, "It will be crucial if you wish to stop that mass in the sky. It is only a matter of time before the power of the shrine fails and the Adephagos is awakened in full."

"Worry not Khroma, I will get the sword back from Yuri soon," Duke said as he watched as the young female knight caught Yuri off guard and stabbed him in the stomach.

"Duke!" Khroma gasped as she too witnessed the attack on Yuri, "Should that boy fall into the hands of the knights, you'll never get that sword back. The Empire will surely reclaim it."

"It doesn't look as though that will happen," Duke said as he watched Yuri stagger towards the edge of the platform, "Khroma, track his decent then get as close as you can."

"From that height," Khroma said, "That fall will kill him. And with his body in the condition that it is in…" She followed Yuri's fall and stopped just above the water's surface.

"Yuri Lowell will not die," Duke said as he removed his jacket then leapt into the icy sea after Yuri

* * *

Duke swam towards Yuri. He could see the sheath of the Dein Nomos tied tightly to the boy's left hand. He could also see the extent of the stab wound, it wasn't terribly deep however if left untreated the wound would kill the boy. Duke knew that he wouldn't have time to remove the sword from the boy's hand. Duke himself was running out of air and in his condition, it was only a matter of time before Yuri drowned.

Duke gently grabbed the boy then swam towards the surface. He could feel Yuri's weak pulse against his hand. He didn't quite know why he saved the boy again, perhaps it was the sword tied around his hand or perhaps it was the boy's determination to change things for the better. But whatever the reason Duke had once again prevented the twenty-one year old from losing his life.

"Khroma!" Duke gasped as he broke the surface of the water and held the boy to the Entelexia.

"The boy," Khroma asked as she carefully took him into her talons, "Is he alive?"

"Barely," Duke said as he pulled himself out of the water.

"Where should we take him?" Khroma asked as she carefully passed the unconscious boy to Duke.

"Zaphias," Duke said, "It's his home town."

"Duke," Khroma said, "Mantaic is closer. We should take him there, he's not going to hold out long in such a condition."

"Yuri has a poor tolerance to the heat," Duke said as he pressed a wad of fabric to the wound to slow the bleeding, "A desert town would not treat him kindly. Head to Zaphias, we will be able to get him a better doctor there."

"You're going to help this boy again?" Khroma asked.

"He will die of blood-loss and hypothermia if we do nothing." Duke said as he wrapped his jacket around Yuri's shivering form, "He wants to save this world and I feel as though he is willing to do whatever it takes."

* * *

When Khroma landed outside of the capital she allowed Duke to slide off then she returned to her Krytian form, "What do you need me to do?" She asked.

"Take him to the Lower Quarter and find out where he lives," Duke said as passed Yuri to the woman, "I will go find him a doctor."

Khroma took the boy and headed into the Lower Quarter. As she walked she got odd glances from the residents and people seemed to be muttering about her under their breath to one another.

"Is that…Yuri?" A young boy wearing a white and orange stripped tee-shirt asked her.

"Do you know him?" Khroma asked.

"Yeah I do," The boy said, "Everyone here does. What happened to him? He's really hurt!"

"He was injured during a battle," Khroma said, "Do you happen to know where he lives?"

"Of course I do," The boy said.

"Could you show me to his home?" She asked.

"It's right this way," The boy said, "Hey…is Yuri gonna be okay?" he asked softly, "I don't know what I would do if something was to happen to him, he's like my big brother."

"He'll be fine," Khroma said, "My friend is getting him a doctor as we speak."

"A lot of the doctors don't like coming to the Lower Quarter," The boy said, "They don't think we're deserving of their time or services. Which is why a lot of the times when someone here needs medicine, Yuri steals it for us." The boy paused, "Yuri lives in the first room just up the stairs. Please take care of him, he takes such good care of all of us."

"I will," Khroma said, "Thank you." She walked up the stairs to Yuri's room. The room was small but neat. She placed the boy on his bed and sighed. Yuri was very pale and while the bleeding had slowed, the damage was probably already done, Yuri's pulse was weak. His lips had a pale blue hue to them however the tell-tale yet shallow rise and fall of his chest assured Khroma that the boy was in fact breathing.

"_He's lost too much blood," _Khroma thought, _"Is he even going to recover from this?"_

"Khroma," Duke said as he walked into the room carrying a few thick blankets, "I need you to get a life bottle."

"Is the doctor coming?" Khroma asked, "The boy who led me here said that the doctors don't usually come to the Lower Quarter."

"I managed to persuade one to come," Duke said.

"I'll have you know," A man said as he entered the room, "I don't normally take patients such as him."

"If it is money you are concerned about fear not," Duke said, "You will be well paid."

"If you insist," The man said, "Do you have a life bottle?"

"Khroma is going to get one now," Duke said, "How is the boy?"

"He'll live," The man said, "It is deep however it hasn't hit any vital points. Change the bandages every day or so, keep the area around it clean and use a life bottle on him every day until he wakes. The life bottles will keep his body nourished while he's unconscious and help to speed his recovery."

"I thank you," Duke said as the man began bandaging the boy's stomach.

"That should do it," The man said, "Inform me immediately if he shows even the slightest signs of developing an infection. I'll call for one of the castle's healers to seal the wound with a healing arte then treat the infection." He handed Duke a small bottle, "This will help prevent that from happening however there will still be a slight chance of infection. I can also tell that he is hypothermic so he will probably develop a fever within the next few days so don't be alarmed. Just make sure he takes it easy when he wakes up. A wound like that is going to take a while to heal completely. So tell him no battles until he's completely better."

"I will let him know," Duke said as he handed the man a good sized bag of gald, "I thank you for your time."

"You're welcome," The man said as he took his payment and left the room as Khroma walked back in.

"Will he be alright?" Khroma asked as she handed the life bottle to Duke.

"He will be fine," Duke said as he carefully covered Yuri with the thick blankets, "I am leaving the boy in your care. There is something I must attend to."

"Ba'ul and a Krytian woman named Judith are inquiring about this child," Khroma said, "What should I tell them?"

"Tell them nothing," Duke said, "It would be a problem if Yuri's friends were to interfere right now. He needs rest."

"They're worried Duke," Khroma said, "They think this child was killed. The princess could heal him with her power."

"It is best to let his body recover on its own," Duke said, "Tell them nothing. They can wait until he has fully recovered."

Khroma sighed as Duke left the room. There were times when she didn't understand the human that she had befriended and this was one of those times.

* * *

"Commandant, we have thoroughly searched the surrounding area and we are sorry to report that there were no signs of Mister Yuri Lowell."

Flynn sighed he had been afraid of that. _"If he fell into the ocean, he's done for…" _He thought.

"Thank you," Flynn said tiredly. He hadn't gotten any sleep since Yuri had gone missing and it had been a good twelve hours, "You may take your leave."

The knight left and Flynn punched his desk, "Dammit Yuri!" He yelled, "This isn't how I wanted things to end up!"

"I'm sorry. Did I come at a bad time?"

Flynn looked up, "Lady Estellise," he asked, "What is it?"

"Rita and Judith have returned from the shrine," Estellise said, "They couldn't find Yuri."

Flynn sighed, "Could you call the rest of your group here?" he asked as he rubbed his aching temples. He may have been exhausted, too exhausted to deal with what had happened but he didn't have a choice.

"I'll go get them," Estellise said, "They're all waiting outside."

The rest of the group walked into the room. They all looked as though they were in the same boat that Flynn was in when it came to the amount of sleep they had gotten in the past twelve hours or so. "I will continue my efforts to search for Yuri," he said, "In the meantime you should return to your normal lives…I've know Yuri for a long time and…he wouldn't want you to stop doing the things that are important to you just because he went missing."

"That does sound like Yuri," Judith said.

"What should we do?" Karol asked.

"We should do what Flynn said," Estellise replied, "He knows Yuri better than all of us."

"I guess I can go back to Aspio," Rita said, "But would it be alright if I investigated here first?"

"I don't see a problem with it," Flynn said, "I will inform the Imperial research team that you will be there and that they are not to interfere with your work."

"I'm going back to Danghrest," Karol said.

"As will I," Raven said, "I wanna see if things have settled down after the Don's passin'."

"What about you Judith?" Estellise asked.

"I'm going to help Rita here then I'll do what I please," Judith said, "What are you going to do Estelle?"

"I'm going to go back to Zaphias with Flynn," Estellise said.

"You're going back to the castle?" Rita asked in disbelief, "But why?"

"The only reason I was allowed to continue the journey was because Yuri was protecting me," Estellise said, "I will help Flynn with the search efforts," She lowered her voice, "I know that Yuri is still alive somewhere…"

"I really hope you're right…" Flynn said quietly, "I just…really hope you're right…"

* * *

Yay, Duke made an appearance! And he's just as cold as ever. Poor Flynn though, he seems to be the most bothered (aside from Sodia). So let me know what you thought and I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible. Until next time!

_Ex-shark-V-005 _


	3. Hiding the Truth

Hey there! I'm back after a bit of a break, (I have fifteen other active fics so bear with me here). I don't have much to say about this chapter so you get started right away. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia or the characters. I'm just borrowing them for a while.

Happy Reading!

* * *

Chapter Three: Hiding the Truth

Khroma was rather relieved when Duke entered the room a few days later. Yuri's condition had not improved, in fact it had only worsened.

"Duke," She exclaimed, "You've returned."

"How is the boy?"

"His condition is growing more precarious as time passes," Khroma said, "His skin is burning."

"Good, he's feverish," Duke said.

"How is that a good thing?" Khroma asked, "In his weaken state a fever could kill him."

Duke put his hand on Yuri's forehead, "His fever, while it is high, it is far from dangerous," He said, "This fever is just his body's natural defense against infection. He nearly drowned, such a fever is normal."

"But should it continue…" Khroma said, "His body will give in to the stress and it will shut down on him."

"Should his fever continue we will not have to worry about him developing an infection," Duke said, "Worry not Khroma, he will recover to full strength in due time." He glanced out the window as something caught his eye, "Khroma, I'm stepping out for a bit."

Duke walked out of the small room and into the small alleyway near the inn.

"I was wonderin' when and where you were gonna turn up."

"What are you doing here?"

"I heard a rumor that a man with long white hair wearin' odd clothing was seen in the Lower Quarter of Zaphias."

"So you came all the way to Zaphias for just that?"

"Well ya see, the other part of the Rumor was that this man was seen with a Krytian woman who was carryin' a boy who looked strikin'ly like a boy that both the knights and guilds have spent three days searchin' fer. I came here to see if that part of the rumor was true as well."

"And if it is?" Duke asked, "What will you do? Will you inform the knights and guilds that the boy is safe so he can be swarmed by visitors?"

"Well…that all depends on what you want me ta do."

"I want you to leave and tell nothing of what you know to anyone."

"Duke!" Khroma called from the doorway of Yuri's small apartment, "He's waking!"

"That shouldn't possible…" Duke muttered.

"So ya are hidin' something.' What are you up ta?"

"I do not have time for your little games Raven," Duke said as he walked towards Yuri's apartment, "There is something I must attend to."

"That somethin' would be Yuri Lowell, right?" Raven asked as he followed, "I mean, why else would you be headed towards the kid's room. I saw that dragon thing at Zaude, ya know the one that saved our asses at Cados and at Kogorh? So what made you save him this time?"

"That is none of your concern," Duke said.

"Ah so you didn't do it to save the kid," Raven said, "You did it to save the sword he was usin.' Or could it be that you see a little bit of yourself in him?"

"I said it is none of your concern." Duke walked up to the bed and knelt down, "Can you swallow?" He asked the barely conscious young man. Yuri nodded and Duke took a small medicine vial out of his pocket. He carefully propped the boy up, "Drink this."

"What…is it…" Yuri managed to mumble.

"It's medicine," Duke said, "If you want to recover you need to take this."

"Where…?" Yuri whispered, "What...happened...?"

"Don't worry about that now," Duke said as he brought the bottle up to Yuri's lips, "Just drink this." The boy nodded and Duke gently tipped the bottle so that the young man could ingest the contents.

"That was a sedative wasn't it?" Raven asked as he watched Yuri fall limp against the white haired man's chest.

"His body will recover faster if he stays asleep," Duke said as he rested the boy against the bed and stood up, "His wound will reopen if he moves too much."

"Wound?" Raven asked, "I mean he did fall from Zaude but unless he landed on a merman or somethin' the only injuries he shoulda sustained are broken bones probably a concussion as well."

"He was caught off guard and stabbed in the abdomen by the young lieutenant," Duke said.

"Young lieutenant…" Raven asked, "Ya don't mean Sodia do you?"

"Yes," Duke said.

"Heh, no wonder she was such a mess," Raven said, "Well, I'm gonna head back to Dahngrest. Don' worry I won't tell anyone what I saw here."

"Thank you Raven," Duke said, "It would be a problem if his friends were to show up here before he recovers completely."

"No," Raven said, "Thank _you_."

"Why are you thanking me?" Duke asked.

"Thanks for savin' the kid fer us," Raven said, "I dunno what woulda happened to him if you hadn't have saved him. Well I'll get outta your hair, take good care of him fer us."

"Duke," Khroma said after Raven left, "Is it alright that Captain Schwann knows about this boy?"

"I can trust Raven," Duke said, "I know he will not speak of what he witnessed here."

"Ba'ul and his partner, Judith, keep inquiring about this child," Khroma said, "And I am not the only one either. They have called out to Phaeroh and Krons as well as other Krytia."

"Like I have said before, tell them nothing," Duke said.

Khroma sighed as Duke headed for the door, "If you insist. Where are you going?"

"I will be back in a few days," Duke said, "The medicine will wear off in about three days. Stay here until the morning of the third day. He should have recovered enough to be left alone by then."

"I understand," Khroma said.

* * *

Sodia sighed as she lay the bed in her quarters. She felt absolutely awful. Flynn had trusted her to help protect Yuri and she…she had led him to his death.

"Sodia," Witcher called from the other side of her door, "Commander Flynn wants to see us."

"Tell him I'm not feeling well," Sodia muttered as she pulled her blankets over her head.

"May I come in?" Witcher called.

"Yeah," Sodia said as the mage entered the room.

"Sodia," Witcher asked as Sodia sat up, "What's wrong?"

"Yuri Lowell's disappearance…" She mumbled, "It's my fault…I…I stabbed him…and then…he just fell…"

"Wait…what!" Witcher exclaimed, "You _stabbed _Yuri Lowell?"

"Please," Sodia muttered, "Please don't tell Flynn…it'll kill him…I'll tell him when I'm ready to…but for now…keep it a secret."

"Alright," Witcher said, "I'll tell Commander Flynn that you're not feeling well."

"Thank you…" Sodia mumbled as Witcher left the room. She then flopped down on her bed and cried.

Flynn sighed as he made his way to Sodia's quarters. His Lieutenant had been acting odd since they left Zaude and he was nearly as worried about her as he was worried about Yuri.

"Sodia," He called as he knocked at the door, "May I come in?"

"Captain…" Sodia called, "Come in."

"Sodia, are you alright?" Flynn asked as he entered the room, "Witcher told me you were feeling ill, is it true?"

Sodia nodded, "I'm not feeling well at all…"

Flynn sighed, "Do you need some time off?" He asked.

"Captain!"

"I don't want you to make yourself sicker," Flynn said, "Do you need to take some time off?" He sighed when Sodia didn't respond, "I'm going to grant you a week of leave."

"Captain!" Sodia exclaimed, "You don't have to do that!"

"Yes I do," Flynn said, "Take a week off. Go back to your hometown and rest a bit," He smiled lightly, "I don't want you to get hurt fighting if you're not feeling well."

"C-Captain Flynn…" Sodia gasped, "Thank you…"

"Lady Estellise already said that she would take over for you if she needed to." Flynn said, "She seemed to notice that you weren't feeling well."

"But should she be fighting?" Sodia asked, "She is a princess after all."

"Lady Estellise can hold her ground in battle," Flynn said, "So far, she's been the only person to cause Yuri to completely collapse from exhaustion after a battle. Although I think the high density of aer also played a part in that…I should have kept a better watch on him, I knew something like this was bound to happen someday…if only I had been up on that platform…I could have protected him better…he would be alright…"

Sodia sighed, "You really care for him don't you?" She asked.

"Yuri was my first friend," Flynn said, "All the other boys my age didn't like me very much…Yuri was the only person who didn't mind getting beaten at everything time after time. He may have gotten on the wrong side of the law but he really is a good person."

"Flynn…" Sodia muttered. She just couldn't keep the truth from Flynn any longer. She knew that there was a good chance that Flynn would strip her of her rank then arrest her but she couldn't keep the fact that she had led Yuri to his death from her captain any longer, "There's something you should know…regarding Yuri…"

"What is it Sodia?" Flynn asked.

"He…Yuri was…He…"

"Flynn," A soft voice called from the doorway, "I'm sorry am I interrupting?"

"No," Sodia said, "Come in Lady Estellise."

"Thank you," Estellise said, "Although I would prefer if you called me Estelle…everyone else does."

Estelle…" Sodia said, "That's what Lowell calls you isn't it?"

"It is," Estellise said, "I like it."

"What is it Lady Estellise?" Flynn asked.

"The Schwann brigade has finished making preparations for the search mission," She said, "They're ready when you are."

"Alright," Flynn said, "Tell them I'll be right there."

"Flynn," Estellise said, "Would it be alright if I come along too? I'm worried about you…you haven't been sleeping very much and you've been working around the clock. I want to come in case something happens to you…" She lowered her voice, "You won't be able to search for Yuri if you make yourself sick…"

"I'll be alright Lady Estellise," Flynn said, "And yes, you may come along. I'll need you to fill in for Sodia for a few days."

"Okay," Estellise said, "Thank you Flynn. I hope you feel better Sodia."

"Thank you E-Estelle…" Sodia said as the pink-haired princess left the room.

"What did you want to tell me?" Flynn asked.

"Never mind…" Sodia mumbled.

"Alright," Flynn said, "I hope you feel better soon Sodia."

"Thank you," Sodia mumbled cursing her own weakness, "Please, be careful."

* * *

Oh Raven, what are we gonna do with you? (I honestly think that Raven knew that Yuri was alright based on his reaction but whatever) And Sodia tried to tell Flynn what really happened but Estelle interrupted probably for the better too. So what's gonna happen next? The next chapter should be up really, really soon so just hang tight. 'Til next time!

_Ex-Shark-V-005_


	4. Stormy Seas

Hey there! I'm back! I updated pretty quick this time didn't I? I was actually planning on posting this one with the last one but I decided to wait a bit. I don't have much at all to say about this chapter so you can get started right away! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia or the characters. I'm just borrowing them for a while.

Happy Reading!

* * *

Chapter Four: Stormy Seas

Estellise sighed as she stood at Flynn's side. The Commandant had allowed her to fill in as his lieutenant in Sodia's absence. Although even if Flynn hadn't granted her the status of temporary lieutenant she would have been at his side anyway. She was worried about the young knight. Since Yuri had gone missing, he wasn't eating much and she could tell by his wan face that he hadn't been sleeping well. That fact had been confirmed to her the night before when she had been woken by Flynn screaming Yuri's name in the middle of the night.

"Flynn are you sure you want to do this?" She asked, "Couldn't you just stay in Zaphias and have the Schwann brigade look for Yuri? You really don't look well."

Flynn shook his head, "I couldn't do that," He responded softly, "It's my fault Yuri's missing…I should have been there with him when he confronted Alexei."

"Flynn," Estellise said, "It's not your fault. I'm sure Yuri would yell at you for blaming yourself."

"I know," Flynn said, "But I can't help it…I'm worried about him."

"Commandant Flynn," Leblanc called as he walked up to the pair, "Lady Estellise. We've receive word that the area around Terca Lumireis is experiencing inclement weather. There have been reports of driving, sheet-like rain, strong winds and swells of up to three and a half meters sir. Sky to ground lightning has also been reported in that area sir. We should really reconsider until the weather calms."

"I cannot do that," Flynn said sharply, "My friend is out there somewhere and I _will _find him."

"But sir…" Leblanc said, "It's been four days odds are Lowell is…"

"Don't you dare say it!" Flynn exclaimed dangerously, "Yuri is still out there somewhere! Lieutenant Leblanc ready your brigade we embark in an hour!"

"Y-Yes Sir!" Leblanc stuttered as he saluted the young commandant. He had never seen Flynn act like that.

"Flynn," Estellise murmured, "We really should wait. It's dangerous to go out in such weather."

"We're running out of time," Flynn said, "If we don't find Yuri soon…we may never find him at all…I don't want my best friend to die…"

"I don't want Yuri to die either," Estellise said, "But I don't want anything to happen to you either. If you continue the way you have been…you'll hurt yourself."

"I'll be alright Lady Estellise," Flynn said, "We should get going."

* * *

Flynn sighed. Just as Leblanc had said, the weather around the center of the world was indeed bad. The rain was coming down in sheets and the waters were rough.

"This is crazy Flynn!" Estellise called out trying to be heard over the din of the weather, "You're not going to be able to find him under these conditions! Come in the cabin before you make yourself sick or fall overboard!"

"I can't give up yet!" Flynn yelled back, "I know this time we'll find him!" He was trying to keep himself optimistic but the foul weather could be seen as an omen that the raven-haired man was not going to ever be found. Flynn was trying to keep himself thinking that way but the weather in this part of the ocean was usually fair. Storms such as this one rarely occurred in the inner ocean. _"Please Yuri…be out there somewhere…alive and well…" _he thought.

He wasn't one to pray but he found the need to…for his best friend's well being. He wasn't sure if it was the rough seas or the fact that he was soaked to the bone or the fact that he hadn't slept much in the past four days but for whatever reason and extreme fatigue and weakness was setting in and holding strong. He gripped the edge of the ship as the dizziness brought him to his knees. _"Maybe I should have listened to Lady Estellise..."_ He thought.

"Flynn!" Estellise cried as she saw a large swell approaching the bow, "Look out!"

Flynn looked up in time to see the nearly four meter swell nearly swallow the ship he was standing on. The next thing the young commandant knew he was surrounded on all sides by a suffocating black mass and his exhausted mind went blank.

"Flynn!" Estellise cried when she saw that when the water receded from the bow Flynn was nowhere to be seen. She quickly pounded on the cabin door, "Someone help! Help!"

"Lady Estellise," One of Flynn's knight called as he opened the door, "What's wrong?"

"Hurry…" She sobbed, "Flynn's fallen overboard! Hurry you need to save him!"

The knight wasted no time calling from reinforcements then leaping into the waters after his commander.

A few moments later the Knight broke the surface of the water struggling to hold Flynn's head above the water, "Hurry," He gasped as he held Flynn up to one of the knights on the deck, "He's not breathing…"

Estellise nearly cried as one of the other knights pulled the commandant to safety, "Let me help!" She cried, "Please! He can't die! I can't lose him too!"

The second knight place Flynn on the deck of the ship and started to perform CPR on the young commander, "He'll be alright Lady Estellise," He said. Flynn started to cough and choke as vacant hazy blue eyes opened, "Commandant! Commandant Flynn! Are you alright!"

Flynn didn't respond. His blue eyes rolled up into his head as he lost consciousness again.

"Quick get him inside the cabin!" Estellise ordered.

"Lady Estellise," The first knight asked, "What should we do?"

"We are going to abort the mission and return to Zaphias," She said, "Flynn is in no condition to be out here like this."

"Alright," The second knight responded, "I'm going to go set off the flair then and tell the other boats that we're aborting."

"Thank you sir," Estellise said, "I will be sure to inform Flynn of your courageous deeds when he's well again."

"Ma'am!"

Estellise hurried to the captain's quarters of the ship after the first knight, "Is he really going to be alright?" She asked.

"Don't worry he'll be alright," The knight said, "He just needs to rest."

"Okay," Estellise said, "Do you want me to wait outside while you change his clothes?"

"Yes,"

Estellise stepped out of the small room. She was still scared. Even though she knew that Flynn was going to be alright she was still worried. She knew that the longer that Yuri was missing the longer Flynn would neglect his own health. She shuddered as she thought about what would happen to Flynn if Yuri never turned up again. She shut her eyes as she tried to stop the tears from falling.

Her thoughts were interrupted as something tugged at the bottom of her armor and whined. She looked down and saw Yuri's dog Repede sitting at her side, "What are we going to do Repede?" She asked as she knelt next to the dog, "Yuri's missing and Flynn's not well. What's going to happen to them?"

The dog whined in response. He seemed to have a good idea what was going on with his master and friend. The dog also knew who had caused Yuri to fall from the top of Zaude however he would take that secret to the grave with him. He had no way of telling the humans what had happened the last time they knew of Yuri's whereabouts.

"Lady Estellise, Flynn is all set," The knight said as he opened the door, "Flynn's probably not going to wake for a while, he's feverish."

"Okay," Estellise said, "Thank you. Come on Repede. We should care for him the best way we know how."

* * *

Flynn was confused when he came to in his bed. The last thing he remembered was a black mass swallowing him whole. He went to sit up but he was met by an intense dizziness and had to lie back down. _"What happened?" _He thought as he looked around the room, _"Why am I back in Zaphias?"_

"Oh Flynn you're awake," Estellise said softly, "I'm so glad."

"What happened?" Flynn asked softly.

"You collapsed and fell overboard," She responded, "As soon as we rescued you I gave the orders to return to Zaphias. You're running a fever right now and you're on bed rest until you're completely better."

"But the search missions," Flynn said.

"The Schwann brigade was kind enough to continue the missions," Estellise said, "And as soon as she saw you, Sodia decided against going on leave to help with the efforts as well. She said that she couldn't just leave the brigade without its commander and lieutenant. She's temporarily taken charge of your brigade."

"I see," Flynn said as he sighed, "I can't believe it…I did it again Estellise…I once again abandoned Yuri in his time of need…because of my weakness."

"Flynn this isn't your fault!" Estellise exclaimed, "You're ill. You shouldn't be worrying about anything except resting."

"I was stupid Estellise," Flynn muttered, "I was so worried about Yuri that I forgot about myself…I let myself get this way…If Yuri was here he would be reprimanding me to no end…I can imagine him yelling "what the hell do you think you're doing, Flynn?" We really need to find him Estellise…"

"I know we do," Estellise responded, "But for now, just get some rest."

Flynn sighed and shut his eyes. Four days of not sleeping well was taking its toll on him, "Estellise…how long has it been?" He asked, "Since Yuri went missing?"

"Today makes day five," She said, "You've been unconscious for about a day."

"I'm beginning to believe that Yuri's not coming back," Flynn muttered, "Odds are, his body is somewhere on the sea floor…Continuing the search would be pointless…"

"Flynn!" Estellise gasped, "How can you just give up?"

"Yuri's never gone missing for this long before," Flynn said, "There was one time he went missing for about a day but he's never done anything like this before. There's no trace of him anywhere near Zaude I mean unless he has wings that he never told anyone about we would have found around there."

"Do you think there's some chance that someone found him before we did?" Estellise said, "Phaeroh was seen in that area, could he have rescued Yuri?"

"I don't know…" Flynn whispered. His mind was beginning to shut down on him, "I'm going to get some sleep. Wake me if you get any information on Yuri's whereabouts."

"Okay," Estellise said, "Sleep well Flynn."

Estellise sighed as she placed a cold cloth on Flynn's forehead. She hoped that the young commandant would sleep well that night, he wasn't going get any better if he didn't rest.

She sighed, _"Please Yuri…be out there somewhere for Flynn's sake, as well as mine…" _She prayed silently.

* * *

Khroma sighed as dawn broke on the sixth day since the dark-haired boy's rescue. Yuri's fever had finally broken and the stab wound was healing nicely. But she was worried about what would happen when the boy woke up. She knew that Yuri would be eager to find his friends and the likelihood of him venturing out alone despite the wound was high. And while the wound was starting to scab over it wouldn't take much for it to reopen. She had been instructed to leave on the morning of the sixth day but she was reluctant to leave. Yuri's body had been through a lot in the past six days due to the wound and she wanted to make sure he was alright. She was almost tempted to call for one of the castle's healers to heal the wound but she would obey Duke's orders for a little while longer. Duke would be back to take Dein Nomos back from Yuri that evening and if the tell-tale signs of the rather severe injury that the boy had sustained were not present, Duke would not be pleased.

She checked the wound one last time then replaced Yuri's shirt and jacket. She left the belt on the bed it was normally tied right where the wound was and she didn't want to aggravate it. She then left a special gummy on the small table as well as the medication she had been using to prevent infection.

She then placed her hand on Yuri's forehead, "Good luck Yuri Lowell," She whispered. She placed a book beside Yuri's head then left the room.

* * *

Flynn felt a bit better the next time he woke up. He found Sodia and Estellise sitting in his room talking quietly. He couldn't make out what they were saying but both girls looked upset and it didn't bode well.

"What's going on?" He asked as he sat up.

"Captain!" Sodia exclaimed, "You're awake!"

"Flynn, how are you feeling?" Estellise asked.

"What were you two talking about?" Flynn asked.

"We were just discussing what happened at Zaude," Estellise said.

"I see," Flynn muttered, "So there's still no word?"

"We've just heard rumors sir," Sodia said, "And none of them are from reliable sources."

Flynn sighed, "Sodia," he said, "I want you to issue a warrant for Yuri Lowell's arrest."

"Flynn!" Estellise cried.

"Make it high priority and have it distributed to every town," Flynn said, "I'm sorry Lady Estellise. If by some chance Yuri had been rescued this will be the quickest way to find him."

"I understand," Estellise said, "It is a good idea…I just hope he's alright…"

There was a knock at the door, "Come in," Flynn called.

"Captain," Witcher called as he entered the room, "Alexei's personal attendant, Khroma, is requesting a meeting. What should I tell her? You're still not well."

"It's fine," Flynn said as he sat up a bit straighter, "As long as she doesn't a bit of informality I can meet with her."

"Alright," Witcher said, "I'll send her in."

"Commandant," Khroma greeted as she entered the room, "I'm sorry to bother you while you are ill."

"What is it Khroma?" Flynn asked.

"After the whole issue with Alexei, I will be stepping down from my post," She said, "There are other matters that I must attend to."

"Alright," Flynn said, "I'll start the paperwork just as soon as I'm well again."

"Thank you commandant," Khroma said, "And there is one more thing. I received word that the child you are searching for had been rescued and will be returning to Zaphias later this evening. Whether the word is true or not I cannot confirm, for now, it is just hearsay."

"Thank you Khroma," Flynn said, "Once I am well I will formally discharge you from the service."

"Get well soon commandant," Khroma said as she bowed then left the room.

"Do you think what she said is true?" Estellise asked.

"I really hope so," Flynn muttered, "Is this one of the rumors you heard?"

"No," Sodia said, "We've heard nothing of this sort. All of the rumors we heard have been completely ridiculous. Like the rumor that Yuri had been rescued by mermen and is now living in a cave on some remote island. What should we do about it sir?"

"If you want I can go walk Repede around the Lower Quarter later on," Estellise said, "He's been down lately. Perhaps a walk around the Lower Quarter will help to cheer him up."

"That sounds like a good idea," Sodia said, "Flynn's ill so he wouldn't be able to investigate and…I doubt Lowell would want to see me…Lowell also seems to trust Estelle…I mean Lady Estellise…"

"You can call me Estelle, Sodia," Estellise said, "I really don't mind."

"It's decided then," Flynn said, "Lady Estellise will patrol the Lower Quarter after sundown tonight with Repede." He paused, "Hopefully the rumor is true…"

* * *

Poor Flynn's really having a hard time. The lack of sleep and proper nutrition is really starting to catch up with him. And Estelle is trying to stay strong too but how much longer until she cracks under pressure? What were Sodia and Estellise talking about though, we may never know. This story is nearly done there's maybe one or two chapters left to write. I hope everyone is enjoying it so far! Until next time!

_Ex-Shark-V-005_


	5. Coming Around

Konnichiwa Minna-san! I know, I know, it's been over a year since I updated this but a lot of things happened. For one, my old computer kept eating the fic for breakfast and I eventually temporarily gave up on it but I have returned! This was going to be the last chapter but since I didn't update it in like a year I decided that I would add a sixth chapter as a little bonus. For the dialogue in this I primarily used the Japanese dialogue with hints of the English dialogue (The Japanese translation gave me a little more freedom as to what was being said) but aside from that I don't have anything else to say about this so enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia or the characters, I'm just borrowing them for a while.

Happy Reading!

* * *

Chapter Five: Coming Around

Yuri came to in a fog. He remembered being stabbed and falling from the top of Zaude but he had no idea how he had gotten wherever he was. He knew that he wasn't dead. The stab wound was far too painful for him to be dead. He opened his eyes and found his surroundings to be rather familiar.

"My room…?" He asked softly, "How did I get here?"

He tried his best to recall how he had gotten here but he came up short. Between the time he fell from Zaude to the time he woke up there was nothing that he could clearly recall. There was a vague and hazy memory of a conversation between a woman and two men that he could barely comprehend but after that there was nothing. He figured there must have been some explanation as to why he was here.

Yuri groaned in pain as he slowly sat up. "I knew she hated me," He said softly, "But I didn't think she hated me this much…" He put his hand to his side and found that his abdomen had been tightly bandaged. _"So I was rescued huh?" _He thought, _"But who was it…?"_ He positioned himself so he was sitting on the edge of his bed. He wasn't about to attempt to stand just yet, just sitting up made his head spin and his side throb painfully.

He looked around his room for any clues as to who had rescued him and he found a book lying on his bed. _"Whoever saved me must have left here," _He thought. The book was marked at a certain page and it sparked Yuri's curiosity. He read the small passage and gasped. It was about the very thing that Estellise had dragged them through a desert for, _"If only we had had this book a few months back," _He thought, _"We might have avoided that whole mess we got ourselves into that time."_

"You have awakened," A deep, familiar voice stated as the door opened.

"Duke…" Yuri muttered as he started to connect the dots as to what had happened to him, "So it was you who saved me…" He sighed as he was able to recall seeing the dragon that had saved them at Cados and Kogorh just before he blacked out _"So that's why I saw that there…"_

"I couldn't have that sword lost to the ocean forever," Duke said bluntly as he picked up the sword that was leaning against the bed, "It was nothing more than that."

"That being said, you still saved my life," Yuri said as he put his hand to his throbbing side again, "And I owe you my thanks."

"That wound is going to take a while longer to heal," Duke said, "I would advise resting until it heals completely. Such a wound will not heal overnight and will be very easy to reopen. My partner left you some medicine to use until the wound heals."

"Thanks," Yuri said, "I'll keep that in mind. How long has it been?"

"You were attacked six days ago." Duke said.

"It's been almost a week then," Yuri said, "I wonder how everyone is doing without me…"

"Your friends are getting by alright," Duke said, "You should worry about yourself more right now. You still have a rather severe injury."

"So, the Shrine of Zaude was powered by the lives of the Children of the Full Moon?" Yuri asked.

"That is correct," Duke said, "The humans brought forth the Adephagos and led it. It was nothing more than atonement. The few remaining Children of the Full Moon along with the Entelexeia decided on how the world should be. The Imperial Family members are their descendants."

"So that's how the Empire started…" Yuri muttered, "And that would explain why that sword will prove a true emperor…It was the key to Zaude…"

"As long as aer is used no one can oppose the Adephagos," Duke explained, "For it was born of aer itself."

Yuri grimaced in pain a little bit as he sighed, "You wanted to stop the Adephagos as well," He said, "Which is why you went around calming the Aer Krene right?"

"Correct."

"Why didn't you ask for help?" Yuri asked, "You could have avoided the whole mess with Alexei if you had."

"I have aligned myself with the Entelexeia," Duke said, "I have no intention of coexisting with humanity. Humanity will never come to any accord."

"What exactly are you trying to do then?" Yuri asked, "The Adephagos was too much even for the ancient civilization.

"I will continue to protect Terca Lumireis…" Duke said, "There is a way to defeat the Adephagos."

"You say that you can't stand humanity but what about us?" Yuri asked, "Aren't we human? Why did you give me Dein Nomos? Why did you cooperate?"

"You were the only ones who attempted to communicate with the Entelexeia," Duke said, "Which is why I…never mind it is done. Do not leave the protection of the barrier until your wound has completely healed. I cannot be there to save you every time."

"Hold on a sec!" Yuri exclaimed as he quickly stood then quickly realized that it had been a bad idea, "Dammit…" He swore as he clutched his throbbing side and sat back down on his bed. Once the pain died down to something he could tolerate he attempted to stand again and was more successful. He looked over at the table and found the medicine that Duke had talked about, _"A special gummy?" _He thought as he picked it up, _"These are rare…why would he just give this to me? Whatever, if it'll help with the pain…"_ He ate the small gummy then left his room hoping that he would be able to find someone with the little strength he had.

* * *

Estellise sighed as she walked around the Lower Quarter with Repede. She hoped that what Khroma had told them was true. Like Flynn, she was beginning to lose hope in Yuri's return. It had been nearly a week since Yuri had gone missing and she knew that most people who went missing for this long, rarely came back. She wanted to walk down the stairs to where Yuri's small apartment was but she couldn't bring herself to do so. She watched as Repede walked to the stairs, _"You can go if you want," _She thought, _"I don't think I could go there…"_

Repede barked happily and it brought Estellise from her thoughts, "What's wrong?" She asked as the dog ran forwards wagging his tail furiously, "Repede wait!" She ran after the dog and what she saw as she approached the staircase made her want to cry.

* * *

Yuri sighed as he leaned against the tavern's wall. The special gummy had restored some of his strength however it had done nothing to help the wound. _"How the hell am I supposed to find everyone like this…?"_ He thought as he clutched his side again and gasped for breath a bit, _"I barely have the strength to walk to the center square…and I'm sure being out for a week isn't doing me many favors either…" _He was pulled from his thoughts by a familiar bark. He looked up and saw Estellise and Repede standing at the top of the stairs he was going to try to scale.

"Estelle…Repede…?" He asked. He wasn't sure if what he was seeing was real of just a hallucination caused by the pain he was in.

"Yuri…" Estellise gasped, "Yuri!" She cried as she sprinted down the stairs and threw herself at him. She also wanted to make sure that he was there. She was happy to find that Yuri was very much solid.

Yuri had expected Estellise to practically fly down the flight of stairs however he had not been expecting the girl to throw herself at him. And he had almost no way of preparing himself for Estellise's weight either. The pink haired girl was by no means heavy but with the injury to his side he almost wasn't able to stay on his feet.

"Agh…! Estelle…wait a sec…" Yuri gasped as the pain in his side flared up again. He gritted his teeth in pain, Estellise had her arm pressed up against the wound, "E-Estelle…"

"It's really you right?" Estellise asked completely ignoring Yuri's pleas, "You're not a ghost right? Oh good, you have a shadow!"

"I'm living, I'm living!" Yuri exclaimed weakly, "That's why…you're hurting me!"

"I'm so happy you're alright," Estellise whispered. She continued to cling to the dark-haired swordsman. She was afraid that if she released him he would only disappear again and she didn't want that to happen.

"Estelle," Yuri gasped as his legs buckled, "Please…let me go…"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" She responded as she released Yuri and he fell to his knees, "What's wrong!" She exclaimed as she knelt beside him and noticed that he was clutching his side, "Yuri…are you injured?"

"Yeah…"

"You should have told me," Estellise said as she helped Yuri stand, "I wouldn't have thrown myself at you like that."

"I didn't have much of a chance to tell you," Yuri said, "And you had no way of knowing. Don't worry about it."

"I feel bad now," Estellise said as she led Yuri over to the stairs, "Sit down, I'll heal you. I was so surprised when Repede just ran out like that!"

"Thanks," Yuri said as Estellise activated her power and immediately the pain vanished, "I'm alright now."

"Was that wound from when you fell from Zaude?" Estellise asked.

"Yeah," Yuri muttered, "I guess so."

"I so happy you're alright," Estellise said, "I was so worried about you."

Yuri sighed, "I really didn't mean to worry you," he responded, "I'm sorry about that."

"I want to tell everyone that you're alright," Estellise said, "I'm sure they'll be happy as well."

"What has everyone been doing these past several days?"

"Well, Rita and Judith went off to Zaude again," Estellise explained, "She mentioned that there was a lot to research there."

"That's Rita for you," Yuri said, "What about…Karol? How's he taking everything?"

"He went to Dahngrest with Raven." Estellise said, "Things have worsened between the guilds and the empire because of Zaude. Karol and Raven went there to make sure the guilds didn't do anything too rash."

"Well I'm sure after Heracles and now with Zaude it doesn't matter if people are in guilds or not," Yuri said, "They're going to be on guard."

"Ioder is worried as well," Estellise said, "Then Flynn's being Flynn and he running all over the place." She decided to keep the part where Flynn worked himself to exhaustion and was now sick in bed from Yuri. He didn't need to be working himself up too much. And knowing Yuri, if he found out that Flynn had made himself sick, he would have marched his way to the castle that very minute to yell at Flynn. "We figured that we would do what we could…without you around…"

"Seems like everyone's been working hard then." Yuri said, "That's good to hear."

"We wanted to work hard because…we knew," Estellise started as tears came to her eyes again, "We knew you were still alive…I can't tell you how many times Flynn sent boats out to try to find you…"

"It seems like I really worried everyone," Yuri said softly, "I'm really sorry about that. But thanks to you, the injury I sustained is completely better."

"You should still rest today though," Estellise suggested, "Everyone can wait another day to see you. I'm sure the past six days have been tough on you."

"Alright, alright," Yuri sighed, "Although I'm pretty sure I was out cold for the entire week. I can't really remember anything that happened."

"I see," Estellise muttered, "You still need to rest though. You probably haven't completely regained your strength yet."

"I'm pretty sure you're right," Yuri said, "And besides, if I've been unconscious for the past six days then I haven't eaten anything in the past six days. I'm pretty hungry right now."

"Do you want me to make you something to eat?" Estellise asked.

"You don't have to do that," Yuri said, "You did heal me, I'll make supper."

"You should be pushing yourself too much today," Estellise said, "I'm sure your side is still a little tender."

"It's not like I'm gonna be fighting or anything," Yuri said, "I'm just gonna throw a little something together."

"Let me help you then," Estellise said.

Yuri sighed, "Alright, fine," He said. He wasn't going to be able to convince Estellise otherwise. Once the girl had her mind on doing something, she was going to do it, no questions asked, "Come on, I'm sure we'll be able to use the kitchen at the inn. The woman who runs it set aside an oven solely for my use."

"That was nice of her," Estellise said.

"So what do you want?" Yuri asked.

"I don't really mind," Estellise responded, "Whatever you choose to make is fine with me."

"Alright then," Yuri laughed, "I'll make it a surprise."

* * *

Khroma sighed in relief as she watched Yuri and Estellise from a nearby ally way. She remained in the Lower Quarter knowing that, once Duke left, Yuri would set out to find his friends regardless of his condition. Being the former Commandant's assistant, she had often observed both Flynn and Yuri when they were children. She knew that Yuri wasn't much a fan of taking it easy and she wanted to be close by in case Yuri's wound needed a healing arte in order to heal properly.

She had initially wanted to heal the boy's wound with a healing arte however Duke had not permitted her to us anything besides life bottles on the boy. If the princess had not shown up when she had, Khroma would have healed Yuri's wound herself. She smiled lightly and started to make her way to the castle again. She no longer felt the need to monitor Yuri. She knew that he would be alright now that the princess was with him. The princess's healing artes were able to completely seal such a wound with just a single arte.

"I wish you luck until we meet again…Yuri Lowell…"

* * *

"Is something wrong Yuri?" Estellise asked as Yuri stopped in the doorway, "Is your side hurting again?"

"No," Yuri answered, "I thought I heard someone call my name."

"I see," Estellise said, "You shouldn't worry about it too much."

"As you wish," Yuri said with his trademark smirk gracing his lips, "Come on."

* * *

Sodia sighed as she sat down on her bed. She had just returned from patrolling the area around Zaude with the Schwann Brigade and once again they had found nothing. When she went to break the news to Flynn, he had been in very good spirits considering that his best friend had been missing for nearly a week now and that he was still running a rather high fever. It was then that he told her to call off the rest of the search missions. When she questioned the reasoning behind such orders he simply replied, "Yuri is with Lady Estellise now, he's going to be alright." It was a relief to see her captain smiling again, even if the reason why he was smiling was because of Yuri Lowell's safety.

Sodia didn't quite understand how anyone could have survived such a fall and not have serious and permanent injuries. The wound she had inflicted on him had not hit any vital points but had still been a rather deep wound none the less. She wondered if perhaps losing consciousness from the blood loss had relaxed his body enough for him to survive falling probably several hundred meters into the ocean without any lasting wounds. She figured that had to be it, there was no other explanation. But if that was the case then how did he not drown? And how did he end up back in Zaphias of all places? She knew that someone had to have had rescued him, but who?

She decided to call it a night. She was exhausted from taking over for Flynn until he felt better not to mention that she hadn't been sleeping well either. For the past several night she had jolted awake due to a nightmare of Yuri's ghost telling Flynn what had happened. Naturally, the dream always ended with her being locked up and sentenced to death. Stripped of her rank and dignity as Yuri's ghost continued to mock and chastise her as she walked to her execution. She was never actually executed she always woke up in a panic, sweating and shaking as she told herself that it wasn't real before she could be killed. However she had a feeling that she wasn't going to have that dream again. Yuri's survival had been confirmed by Khroma and therefore he couldn't be a ghost.

But then she realized that Yuri was alive. And that sent fresh wave of panic and fear through her. Yuri was still alive. He could tell Flynn what she had done to him not as a ghost but in _person_. Yuri could show Flynn the deep scar that was probably where the wound once was. Even with the princess's powerful healing artes, such a wound was bound to leave a scar. And if he did that, she would be stripped of her rank and imprisoned for attempted murder. She knew that seeing Yuri Lowell again was inevitable. They always seemed to run into each other wherever they went. She knew that Yuri was going to be angry with her; she had nearly led him to his death. She now dreaded ever seeing Yuri again.

She no longer had the right to hate him, though. Sure, Lowell had killed Cumore, Ragou and Alexei acting as a vigilante. However she had done the same exact thing to him. After her dear captain, and commandant, refused to criminally charge Yuri, Sodia had taken matters into her own hands and attacked the man, nearly leading to his death.

"_I'm the same as Lowell now,"_ She thought as tears started to well up in her eyes, _"Is he going to call me out as I have called him out? Will he ever forgive me? You can't just go up to someone and say "sorry for stabbing and nearly killing you." What do I do now? Will Yuri Lowell tell Flynn?"_

With all the fear and confusion clouding her mind, she clutched her pillow tightly and cried herself to sleep.

* * *

Yuri sighed as he lay awake in his bed. He was rather tired but he didn't quite want to sleep yet. There were a few things he wanted to get off his mind first. And since he still wasn't in much of a condition to use his normal method of going outside the barrier and picking a fight with few monsters he would just have to think them through a little bit. He thought about what Sodia had done to him. He couldn't say that he was all too happy with the young lieutenant but at the same time he didn't blame her for what she had done either. He was a criminal and she was just doing her job.

He knew that eventually he would see the young lieutenant again. And when he did he would perhaps discuss it with her in private. He saw no need to inform Flynn of his second in command's actions. If she wanted to tell Flynn, that was fine but he wouldn't bring it up. Yuri knew that he probably would have done the same thing Sodia did if the roles had been switched. In fact, he _had_ done the same thing Sodia did when he killed Ragou and Cumore. The only difference with Sodia was she had failed to kill him.

He sighed. The bandages around his abdomen were starting to cause his skin to itch however he didn't want to remove them in Estellise's presence. He knew that there was a deep scar under the bandages and he didn't want the princess to worry about it. Nor did he want the girl to question the origin of the wound.

He silently gasped in pain again as Estellise accidently elbowed him in the side as she slept. Estellise had insisted on staying in the same room as him in case something happened to him during the night. He had offered her the bed but she flat out refused to let him sleep on the floor saying that it would be bad for his condition. So in the end, the two of them ended up sharing the small bed that was in his room. It was a bit of a tight fit but it was still comfortable until Estellise elbowed him again and he nearly cried out a bit. The wound had sealed up however it was still extremely tender to the touch and was probably still severely bruised.

"Agh…Estelle…" He whispered as she accidently hit him a third time.

The girl stirred, thankfully not hitting the still tender injury again, "Uh…Yuri?" She asked tiredly, "What's wrong…? Why are you awake?"

"I really didn't mean to wake you," Yuri said softly, "But you keep elbowing my side…it still hurts a little."

"Oh my gosh," She exclaimed, "I am so sorry! Do you want me to use another healing arte on you?"

"Don't waste your energy," Yuri said as he rubbed his side a bit, "It's just a bad bruise now."

"I see," Estellise said, "You should try to get back to sleep. We're going to find everyone else tomorrow and you'll want to be well rested for that. I'll try to be more careful."

"Okay," Yuri said, "Night Estelle."

"Sleep well Yuri," Estellise responded.

Yuri sighed as he shut his eyes. He would figure out how he was going to deal with Sodia after he got some sleep and with that he slipped into a light but restful slumber.

* * *

Well there you have it. I know it took me like a year to get it up but whatever, it happens. Oh Duke, why are you such an ice prince? Would it kill you to defrost a little bit? I enjoyed writing the little interjections with Khroma and Sodia while I was supposed to be taking notes in a class where the professor would jump from the 1920s to like the 1960s then to the 1930s in a matter of two sentences somehow…but I digress. So what did you think? I'm going to get the next chapter up in a few days or so so just hang tight. I just passed this point in ToV in my like fourth play through so I just got a bunch more ideas. And I promise I won't go another year before updating again. So until next time minna-san ja ne!

_Ex-Shark-V-005_


	6. Getting Things Back to Normal

Konnichiwa Minna-san! It's been a few months but I'm back! This semester has been brutal, not to mention the bout of writer's block and ten crazy long video games I've been playing through. But whatever, I managed to find time to get this chapter done. I don't have much to say aside from Flynn might be a little, tiny bit out of character at points. Well I've nothing more to say about this so, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia or the characters, I'm just borrowing them for a while.

Happy Reading!

* * *

Chapter Six: Getting Things Back to Normal

When Estellise woke up the next morning Yuri was still sound asleep. _"He must still be exhausted," _She thought, _"And I don't think that waking him up last night helped him at all."_

She carefully got out of bed while trying not to disturb Yuri, _"Since you made supper last night,"_ Estellise thought, _"I'll make breakfast."_

Estellise turned for the door when Yuri stirred. She held her breath as he stretched a bit but he remained asleep and she sighed in relief. She knew that Yuri still needed to rest. The night before he had seemed listless and almost out of it. She wanted him to be well rested in case they ended up being ambushed by monsters on their way to find the others. The last thing Yuri needed was to reinjure himself after the ordeal he had been through. She left Yuri a note explaining where she was going then quietly left the room. She would make the two of them breakfast but first she would stop to see how Flynn was fairing.

* * *

Sodia was rather surprised when she found Flynn attending to his normal duties. "Captain," She called, "What are you doing? I heard from Witcher that you were still a touch feverish."

"I'll be fine Sodia," Flynn said as he sifted through some of his paperwork, "I can't let myself lie around while there's work to be done."

"You should really take it easy," Sodia said, "You're going to make yourself sicker!"

Flynn sighed, "I'll only do the little things today," he said, "And I'll take breaks if I start feeling fatigued."

"If you insist," Sodia sighed, "Just please don't work too hard."

"What about you?" Flynn asked, "How have you been feeling? I know after what happened at Zaude, you were feeling sick for a few days. Are you feeling better now?"

"I'm feeling completely better now sir," Sodia said, "There's no need to worry about me."

"Alright," Flynn said, "As long as you're feeling better."

"Commandant," A Knight called as he entered the room, "Lady Estellise is requesting a visit."

"Let her in," Flynn ordered.

"Roger," The knight responded and opened the door for the princess.

"Flynn!" Estellise cried as she ran into the room, "How are you feeling? Should you be up so soon?"

"Lady Estellise," Flynn greeted, "I already promised Sodia that I would only do the little things today. What can I do for you today?"

"I just wanted to let you know that Yuri is alright," She said, "I found him in the Lower Quarter yesterday evening."

"I know," Flynn said, "Khroma stopped in a little while after you left and told me that Yuri was alright. I just want to know where he's been all this time."

"I don't even think he knows exactly what happened to him," Estellise said, "He thinks he may have been unconscious the entire time."

"He thinks he's been unconscious for the past six days?" Flynn asked, "Just how badly was he injured…?"

"I don't know but it must have been bad," Estellise said, "When I found him he was extremely pale and he seemed to be in severe pain. His abdomen was heavily bandaged as well but he wouldn't remove the bandages to let me inspect the wound at all. I don't think he had any broken bones though. There was a salve used to prevent infection on his table so he must have suffered some sort of deep gash…And I don't think broken bones would have been enough for Yuri to look the way he did yesterday. I don't think I've ever seen him look that weak..."

Flynn sighed, "I'm sure we'll find out what happened to him in time. Sodia," He called to his lieutenant, "You said you saw what had happened to Yuri before he fell. Did he seem to have any kind of deep wound on his abdomen?"

Sodia gasped. Of all the questions Flynn could have asked about what had happened before Yuri fell, that was probably one of the ones she was dreading the most, "I'm pretty sure I remember seeing a sharp piece of that core stuck in his side before he fell," She lied, "But I couldn't tell how deep it was."

"I see," Flynn said, "That would explain the salve used to prevent infection and why whoever rescued Yuri had bandaged it. Perhaps Yuri will be able to tell you about how he got such a wound in the future."

"I hope so," Estellise said, "I was really worried about him. He seemed to be in pain even after I healed him."

"_I hope Yuri Lowell never tells them how he obtained his wound," _Sodia thought, _"If he does…"_

"Is something wrong Sodia?" Estellise asked

"No," She responded, "It's nothing. Where is Lowell right now?"

"He's still sleeping," Estellise replied, "I accidently woke him up in the middle of the night…I had elbowed him in the side a few times…so I decided to let him sleep a bit longer."

"Were you sleeping in the same bed as Lowell?" Sodia asked.

"Yes," Estellise said, "There's only one bed in his room. He insisted that he would be fine sleeping on the floor but with his injury it would have been bad for his condition. But then he wouldn't let me sleep on the floor even though I told him that I wouldn't mind it. So in the end we shared his bed last night…I trust Yuri very much and I know he would never think of doing anything to hurt me or take advantage of me."

"Yuri probably wouldn't know what to do either," Flynn said, "He's completely clueless when it comes to figuring women out."

"That's mean Flynn," Estellise said, "But it is true. Usually if Yuri does say something that could be insulting to Judith, Rita or myself it's usually completely honest or innocent. He teases us a lot but I don't think that he could bring himself to be purposely disrespectful to a woman."

"_It seems there's a lot I don't know about Lowell," _Sodia thought, _"Perhaps I judged him to quickly…"_

"I should really get going," Estellise said, "I just came to tell you that Yuri is alright."

"Thank you Lady Estellise," Flynn said, "Keep an eye on Yuri for me. I'll let the rest of the knights know that there's no longer any need for the arrest warrant I issued the other day."

"Alright," Estellise called as she walked towards the door, "Don't work too hard today!"

"I won't!" Flynn called back.

"Captain," Sodia said, "I just want to know…even after all he's done, why won't you arrest Yuri Lowell?"

Flynn sighed, "It's because Yuri can do what I cannot," He said, "I'm the acting Commandant of the Knights. I wouldn't be able to go off to all corners of the world like Yuri can. It is true that he has done some terrible things however both Ioder and Estellise have overlooked his crimes…and honestly arresting Yuri would probably be one of the worst things I could do right now. Dealing with that thing Alexei unleashed is not something we'll be able to do on our own. Yuri and his group are more suitable to take that thing on than we are."

"When things are all said and done, will you ever punish Yuri for his crimes?" Sodia asked.

"I'm not sure," Flynn said, "I really can't give you an answer yet. Why are you so interested in Yuri all of a sudden?"

"I don't know," Sodia said, "I think I may have misjudged him a little bit…"

"You should try talking to him about these things," Flynn said, "It might help you get to know him a little better."

"I'll try…" Sodia muttered. _"I don't think I'll be able to talk to Lowell…not after what I did to him…"_ She thought.

"Sodia," Flynn said, "Will you go tell the other Captains and Lieutenants that there is no longer any need to arrest Yuri."

"Roger sir," Sodia responded.

* * *

Sodia walked towards the dining hall. She knew that most of the captains would be there having breakfast and she wouldn't have to go chasing them down this way. She knew that most of the brigades wouldn't question the decision. But she knew that there was one brigade that would question it and she didn't quite feel like dealing with that. On the way to her destination she ran into that very brigade.

"Oh good the Schwann Brigade," Sodia said, "Just who I wanted to see."

"Lieutenant Sodia," Leblanc greeted, "What can we do for you?"

"We received a tip that Yuri Lowell has returned to Zaphias," Sodia said, "I want you three to investigate the Lower Quarter and arrest Lowell if he is indeed there. However, I want you to tell him that if he rejoins the knights we'll drop the charges."

"We understand!" Leblanc exclaimed, "We won't let you down Ma'am!"

"Thank you," Sodia said, "I look forward to your success."

"We won't let you down!"

"_That will keep them distracted for a while," _Sodia thought, _"It's not like they're actually going to capture Lowell anyway. It will just keep them from asking stupid, redundant questions."_

* * *

Yuri woke up slowly that morning. A combination staying up late the night before despite his fatigued body's protests and being unconscious for six days had really done a number on him. When he opened his eyes he found that Estellise was no longer lying beside him, _"Where did she run off to this time?" _Yuri thought. He was hesitant to sit up. He was pretty sure that the wound on his side was still going to be badly bruised and rather painful.

"Oh, you're awake," Estellise's voice called.

"Estelle," Yuri muttered groggily as he slowly sat up causing pain to shoot through his side, "Good morning…ugh…"

"Good morning," Estellise greeted, "Is your side still bothering you?"

"Yeah," Yuri said as he gently massaged his right side, "Just a bit."

"I think maybe I should use another healing arte on it just to be safe," Estellise said, "We are going to be leaving today."

Yuri sighed, "If you insist," He muttered in defeat as the pink haired princess began activating her power. "Thanks, it feels much better now."

"Are you sure?" Estellise asked.

"Yes," Yuri sighed, "I'm sure."

"Can I at least see the area around the wound?" Estellise asked, "I'm still a little worried about it. You'll have to take those bandages off sooner or later. Please Yuri, let me see it."

Yuri sighed as he reluctantly removed his belt, jacket and shirt. He then slowly started to remove the bandages. The dressings had left angry red marks around his abdomen, _"I should have removed these sooner…" _He thought. He sighed once he eyed the scar and ugly deep purple bruise that had been left behind by the wound, _"She was nice enough to not hit any vital spots but she still got me pretty good…This is going to continue to hurt for a while…"_

"No wonder you're still in pain," Estellise gasped, "That looks terrible! Did you really get that from getting hit by a sharp piece of debris?"

"Huh?"

"Sodia told us that, before you fell, you had been hit in the side by a sharp piece of that huge core," Estellise said, "Is that really what happened to you?"

"I guess so," Yuri lied, "To be honest I'm not sure what I had been hit with. I didn't really have time to check before I fell and lost consciousness." He sighed, _"So that's the story little Miss Sodia came up with huh?"_ He thought, _"I'll just play along I guess."_

"I see…" Estellise muttered, "Do you want something to eat? I made breakfast not too long ago."

"Sure," Yuri said as he replaced his shirt and jacket, "That sounds good."

"We should hurry though," Estellise said, "Judith will be here soon."

"What's Judi been up to again?" Yuri asked as he stood up and walked to his table.

"Well she went back to Zaude with Rita," Estellise said as placed a plate in front of Yuri, "And once they got back she has been checking in everyday. She'll be here in a little while."

"Alright."

"But are you sure you're alright to travel today?" Estellise asked, "You were pretty badly injured from the looks of it. Should you take another day to rest just to be on the safe side? You still look pretty tired."

"It's not like we're going to be walking a lot," Yuri said, "We'll probably be flying to Aspio and Dahngrest. And besides weren't you all like "I want to tell everyone that you're alright" last night? I'm still a little tired but other than that I'm feeling alright."

"But I still think you should take just another day to rest," Estellise said.

"We have a mountain of problems to deal with," Yuri said, "And if we don't start thinking of solutions now, the entire world is gonna be in some serious trouble."

"I guess you're right," Estellise said, "But please take it easy for at least another day…I don't want to you reinjure yourself or something…"

Yuri sighed. He could tell that Estellise was still rather upset about what had happened to him the week before. "Alright then," He said, "If you want me to take it easy for the next few days then I'll take it easy for the next few days. I'll even sit any battles out if you really want me to."

"I'm sorry Yuri…" Estellise said as tears welled up in her eyes, "It's just…I thought you were dead at the bottom of the ocean somewhere…Even Flynn was starting to think that continuing the search for you was pointless…When I found that you were alive…you don't know what a relief it was for me…I didn't want to sleep last night…I was afraid that I would wake up…and find that it was all just a dream…"

"Estelle…" Yuri gasped as the pink haired girl burst into tears, "Hey, don't cry," He said softly as he embraced the sobbing girl, ignoring the momentary pain in his right side, "I'm okay. I survived. I'm not gonna disappear or anything anytime soon. Do you think I could just leave things the way they are?" He sighed again when Estellise's tears refused to yield, "I know how you feel." He muttered trying a different approach.

"Huh?"

"When that bastard Alexei took you from us," Yuri explained softly, "And when he made you fight me. I was terrified that I would have to kill you in the end…I didn't want to hurt you so made sure to hit you with the backside of my blade…and you nearly defeated me. I was so relieved when you snapped out of it but then…Alexei's system started back up again…and the fear of losing you returned. I was extremely relieved when you came back. So I know how you feel…" he sighed, "I'm probably doing a really crappy job at cheering you up huh? I'm just...really _bad_ at this sort of thing..."

"No…it's not…" Estellise whispered, "It's just…I tried so hard to be strong and not cry the entire time you were missing…And I guess it's just all coming out now…"

"Alright," Yuri said as he gave Estellise a little pat on the head, "Just try not to cry too long okay. Rita'll kill me if she finds out I made you cry."

"I guess you're right," Estellise said as she smiled and dried her eyes, "We really should be going now. Judith will be here any minute!"

"Okay, okay," Yuri said as he grabbed his sword, "Let's get going."

"Alright," Estellise said as she dried her eyes one more time and followed Yuri out of the room.

Yuri sighed as he stopped just in front of the fountain in the Lower Quarter and stared at the sky, "Alexei really unleashed something terrible," he mused out loud, "I'm really getting sick and tired of this "freeing the world" crap."

"Just what is the Adephagos?"

"Who knows? But if it's been called a catastrophe then it can't be anything good," Yuri responded, "It's definitely something big to fight this time around."

"Yes it certainly is," Estellise said, "Are you going to go after it?"

"If I don't, no one will be able to live a normal life," Yuri responded.

"A normal life for everyone…" Estellise mused, "That's why we fight."

"It's reason enough to fight something like that right?"

"Yes it is."

"I thought I heard a familiar voice. I'm glad to see you back on your feet Yuri. You had all of us pretty worried for a while."

"Hanks," Yuri exclaimed.

"That young lady must be tired," Hanks said, "So don't you go dragging her all over the place."

"Estelle," Yuri said, "Besides when you healed me, were you using your power again?"

"She healed every injured person who came back," Hanks said, "We're all in her debt."

"If I can do anything else to help please let me know," Estellise said.

Yuri sighed and made a mental note to remind the pink haired girl of their promise to Phaeroh, "It's nice to see the Lower Quarter is back to normal."

"I would like it better without that thing in the sky," Hanks said.

"Don't worry," Yuri said, "Brave Vesperia will take care of it."

"There you go again Yuri," Hanks exclaimed, "Just how do you think you're going to close that massive hole in the sky?"

"Hey I'm sure Yuri will come up with a way to do it," The young man standing behind Hanks said.

"I agree," The innkeeper's helper said, "Yuri would never make a promise he isn't able to keep."

"STOP RIGHT THERE!"

Yuri sighed as he looked towards the hill, "Man, you guys _again_?" Yuri asked, "What do you want this time?"

Adecor walked up to Yuri with a smug look on his face and a letter in his hand, "Heh heh," He chortled, "I say look at this!"

Yuri took the letter and sighed, "Come_ on_ now, _another_ warrant?"

"But I thought…" Estellise started.

"I say," Adecor said, "A knight's duty is to apprehend the unlawful."

"So…no one else has a bounty on their heads?" Yuri asked, "It's just me?"

"That has nothing to do with the matters at hand," Boccos said.

"We have a proposal," Leblanc stated, "Rejoin the Knight and this all goes away."

"You mean…?"

"Someone high up is making a fuss about leaving you to do whatever you want," Leblanc said, "So…"

"Whoever told you to arrest me feels better if I'm kept under his or_ her_ watch huh?" Yuri finished.

"That's the idea," Leblanc said.

Yuri sighed, _"I can't see Flynn doing something like this," _He thought, _"It had to be that _charming _lieutenant of his. Sorry guys, I can't let you arrest me today, I've got too much to do."_

"Hey! Schwann!" He called as he looked towards the lower entrance to the town. He knew exactly how to get away from the Schwann Brigade. The three members weren't exactly what you would call intelligent so fooling them was extremely easy to do.

Just as Yuri thought they would, Leblanc, Boccos and Adecor snapped to attention, "What? Where?" Leblanc called falling for Yuri's jest hook-line-and-sinker, "H-Hey! Wait!" He yelled as Yuri ran off.

"See you later everyone!" Yuri called as he started to run up the hill.

"Take care!" He barely heard Hanks yell back.

"As I thought," Leblanc sighed as he smiled to himself, "And I wouldn't have it any other way," he mused, "ARREST THAT MAN!"

* * *

"Yuri…" Estellise called as Yuri gasped for breath, "Are you alright?"

"Man…" Yuri panted. Being unconscious for the past almost week had taken a serious toll on his stamina and he was quite out of breath after the short dash, "I'd forgotten…how brutal…this hill was…"

"Those Knights are amazing!"

"More like…tenacious and utterly addicted to their work," Yuri said as he caught his breath.

"Oh!"

"Hey Judith!" Estellise called happily, "Just in time!"

"Well I just came to get you Estelle," The Krytian woman said.

"Where's Rita?"

"She putting all her research together in Aspio," Judith said she turned to Yuri, "You'll come too right?"

"Of course," Yuri said, "If you don't mind."

"Then let's go," Judith said as she heard yelling coming from the Lower Quarter, "It sounds like you have some followers."

"Sorry to make you worry Judi," Yuri said.

"I thought my heart was going to burst from worrying so much," Judith responded as she started walking towards the city's gate.

"Yeah alright," Yuri sighed sarcastically.

She stopped and turned, "Hey, I really mean it," She said with a soft smile.

"WAAAIT!"

"Dammit," Yuri sighed, "Once, just _once_, I want to be able to leave somewhere without _someone_ or _something_ chasing me. Is that too much to ask? We should hurry."

"Ba'ul is just outside the city limits," Judith said, "It isn't far."

* * *

Leblanc, Boccos and Adecor could only stare in wonder as Yuri waved at them from a ship pulled from what looked like a giant flying whale.

"See ya later guys!"

"GET BACK HERE!" Leblanc yelled. He knew that Yuri wasn't about to come off the giant flying fish-thing anytime soon, "Come on…" he sighed, "We might as well tell Lieutenant Sodia that Yuri escaped…again."

* * *

Sodia was sifting through paperwork at Flynn's desk when there was a knock at the door, _"Here's the Schwann Brigade to tell me that Lowell got away again," _She thought as she walked to the door. She quietly slipped out of the room. Flynn was taking a nap and Lieutenant Leblanc had no concept of what an "indoor voice" was supposed to sound like and she didn't want Flynn to wake up just yet.

"Lieutenant," Leblanc said, "We…"

"Couldn't arrest Yuri Lowell?" Sodia finished.

"Yes exactly," Leblanc sighed.

"Captain Flynn actually dropped the warrant," Sodia said, "It happened just after you three left. Don't worry about it"

"WHY ARE WE DROPPING THE CHARGES!" Leblanc screamed.

"Because I don't feel the need to punish Yuri right now." A tired voice came.

"Captain!" Sodia exclaimed as Flynn stood in the door way.

"Lieutenant Leblanc," Flynn said in a low voice as he rubbed his aching forehead, "Lieutenant Sodia…I ask that the two of you lower your voices and if you absolutely _must_ continue your argument do it on the _opposite_ side of the castle. I don't want to hear you, AT ALL!"

"Forgive me Captain," Sodia muttered.

"Sodia," Flynn snapped, "I thought I told you to inform the Captains that I dropped the charges."

"I'm sorry sir…" Sodia muttered.

"I'm taking the rest of the day off," Flynn muttered, "If I have to come out of my room for _any_ reason the consequences will be severe. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir." Sodia responded.

"Before you go back to you room I just want to let you know that Yuri Lowell has left Zaphias." Leblanc said.

"I figured he would," Flynn said as he walked back to his room, "Just let him do as he pleases. Sodia, can I trust you to take charge today?"

"Yes sir."

* * *

The trip from Zaphias to Aspio was relatively uneventful until Yuri, Estellise and Judith reached the seal city.

"I'VE GOT IT!" A familiar voice screamed as a crimson-clad blur blew by them.

"Ah Rita!" Estellise called, "Yuri is…!"

"I don't think she heard you," Judith commented.

"I really don't blame the people here who think that Rita's a strange one." Yuri mused.

"She must have figured something out," Estellise said, "She looked happy."

"I don't think "happy" covers it completely," Yuri said, "But whatever. Let's go see what her big discovery is."

The trio walked to Rita's small hut where they found Rita mumbling about something that went completely over their heads.

"Rita?" Estellise called as the girl walked away still mumbling.

Yuri sighed. It was obvious that the girl hadn't even noticed that they were there and decided to take matters into his own hands, "Rita!" He called loudly.

"Can't you see I'm in the middle of something?" Rita snapped back, "What do you want? Oh it's you how did you…wait a sec you're…!"

"Hey there," Yuri said nonchalantly as the girl turned to face them.

Rita's eyes widened, "Where the hell were you? I looked everywhere for you!" She screamed.

"Ah sorry about that," Yuri said, "It's kind of a long story."

"Whatever," Rita said, "I don't have time for it anyway. I need to talk to Estelle about something."

"You want to talk to Estelle?" Yuri asked.

"I may have found a way to control the behavior of aer," Rita said.

"Really?" Estellise asked, "That's amazing Rita!"

"I learned a lot at Zaude," Rita explained, "And I might be able to apply some of the things I learned to our current situation. However…"

"It's related to Estelle's powers isn't it?" Judith asked.

"We need to interact with aer to figure out how to apply it to a formula," Rita said, "It's something only Estelle can do."

"Now I wish I hadn't given Dein Nomos back," Yuri sighed.

"Did you meet Duke?" Estellise asked.

"Yeah," Yuri said, "He was the one who saved my life. Granted he said he said he only did it to recover the Dein Nomos."

"That sword is different than the child of the full moon," Rita said, "I highly doubt it would be a suitable substitute."

"But that control formula you used on Estelle," Judith said, "That was to control the Child of the Full Moon's power wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Rita responded, "So if we're going to control the aer with this theory, we'll have to release the control formula on Estelle."

"So…if everything works the way it should we'll be able to control the aer," Yuri commented, "However if we screw it up the aer problem will get worse and the Adephagos will destroy the world. Does that sound right?"

"That's quite a bold plan," Judith remarked.

"I'm sure it will work," Rita said, "Believe me Estelle…lend me your power."

"Are you scared?" Judith asked.

"No," Estellise said, "I'm glad. With this I'll be able to use my power to help people. Please Rita, let me know if there is anything I can do."

"So what do we need to do?" Yuri asked.

"I just need to finish working everything out," Rita said, "But I'm almost done with that."

"Alright," Yuri said, "The rest of us will go and pick up Raven and Karol while you work things out."

"I can come too," Rita said, "I've got everything I need in my head. I'll let you know when I come to a conclusion."

"Alright let's go."

* * *

That took a lot longer than I had wanted it to. But whatever, it was longer than I had expected it to be. And yet I had originally intended to include the part where you meet up with Karol and Raven. Once again I used a mix of the original Japanese and English translation for the dialogue (the English version is almost a direct translation of the Japanese version anyway). I will definitely write one more chapter and as for where I go from there, well, we'll just have to see. Until next time minna-san! Ja ne!

_Ex-Shark-V-005_


End file.
